Karina in Wonderland
by WelcomeToMyThoughts
Summary: When Karina Vincent and her friend Lizbeth Raimes, better known as Liz, are kidnapped and brought to Wonderland. Karina is mistaken as the princess of "York" she must find a away out while trying to avoid the King who has his heart set on marrying her.
1. The Beginning

_If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary-wise; what it is it wouldn't be, and what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?_

I had just gone for a two-week trip from my grandmothers in Los Angeles. To be honest, I didn't spend very much time with my grandmother. Most of the time was spent at the beaches surfing and playing beach volleyball. I wanted to enjoy it while I could. There were absolutely no beaches back home in Las Vegas with waves big enough to surf on. Today was my first day back in town... Technically yesterday was, but when you get back in at eleven at night, it doesn't count. Lighters by Eminem started playing, letting me know it was 7am and time to get up. I reluctantly rolled out of bed, literally. I landed on the floor rolled up in a huddle of blankets. I stood up, untangled myself from the blankets then headed off to the shower. I came out twenty minutes later smelling like Satsuma and feeling squeaky clean. I combed out my hair and put a de-frizzer in it then left it to dry. I put on some cover-up, mascara, eyeliner, and a bit of red lipstick. I went over to my closet and flipped through it until I came upon a pair of black skinny jeans and a black camisole. Over top of that I put on a navy blue cardigan and a long, knotted, gold necklace. I walked back into the bathroom and brushed my straight white teeth. I put on my black ray ban glasses over my eyes. My eyes were an odd color. They were very bright green, but the had a black ring around them. If you looked closer, you could see that it was an extremely dark blue that faded slightly into the green in tiny lines. I fluffed my golden blonde hair slightly. It was wavy curly from my natural curls. I was pretty sure it would be dry when I got to school. I headed downstairs and grabbed breakfast then headed off to school. I arrived and parked my beat up old car between the popular and the jocks in my usual spot seeing as I was sort of both. As I looked around, I saw how badly it stuck out and couldn't help but laugh. I grabbed my volleyball bag from the back seat and my purse and binder from the front seat then walked inside. Smiling and waving at the people I recognized. I headed straight for the girls change room to throw my bag in my locker. When I walked in I was surprised to see Liz there. Liz was my best friend; she was one of the popular groups and tried to stay away from the gym as much as possible. "LIZ!" I screamed and ran and hugged her. "KARINA!" she yelled back with a grin. "I haven't seen you forever man!" I said and looked at her. She looked exactly like she did before I left. Her hair was still, long, straight, and black. Her blue eyes were just as kitten like as before. What did I expect? Leave for two weeks and she'd be a new person? Nope! I like the normal Liz best. "So what did you do on your trip?" Liz asked as I put my bag in my locker. "I went to the beach lots, I practically lived there... and I went to a couple concerts." "Concerts? Beaches? In L.A.? Details!" she demanded. "Well, the concerts weren't that different then the ones here, but the beach was amazing. I got to surf!" Liz laughed "you and surfing! I swear your half Hawaiian or something." I smiled" surfing is the best, Hawaiian or not!" The warning bell rang, signaling that it was time for us to leave. "Bye!" I called to Liz and ran out of the room. I had two minutes to get to class, and the chemistry room was on the other side of the school. I wasn't a school freak; it was just that, being late for Mrs. jones class meant missing after school activities, which for me was volleyball. I had already missed two weeks and didn't want to miss more practices during the week before the tournament. I ran as fast as I could, the classroom door was just insight as the bell rang. I ran through the door right as the bell finished ringing. "Your late!" Mrs. Jones growled, looking at me over her old lady glasses. "Go get a late slip!" I rolled my eyes and left the class, heading towards the office. Five minutes later, I was turning around the corner to the office. I waited a little ways behind the desk for the guy that was standing there to be finished. It seemed like he was signing papers or something. From behind him, I could tell that he had blonde hair that in a way you could call curly, but it was too short to actually curl. It was more like wavy. He was rather heightily, When I looked straight at him, I was looking at his neck. He was wearing a plain black t-shirts, jeans, and a white toque thing on the back of his head. It clearly wasn't to keep his head warm, just to look cool. He turned around and bumped into me. I looked up at him. He had extremely blue eyes; the further you looked into them the bluer you saw. "Umm, hello." he said to me with a velvety voice. I blinked "uh hello," I replied. "Sorry I need to uh..." I had totally forgotten what I was there for. I caught sight of the late slips in the corner of my eye "Get a late slip! Yep, that's what I was here for." I told him nervously and stepped around him. He didn't say anything before he walked out of the room. I filled out the slip then hurried back to class. I handed Mrs. Jones the slip and sat down at my lab table at the back of the class. I noticed a new textbook sitting on the other side of the table along with a new chemistry set and microscope. They weren't exactly 'new' but they clearly hadn't been used yet this year. "Hey, uh, did someone leave their stuff here?" I asked. Mrs. Jones turned her, beady, grey eyes on me. "No Miss Vincent, we have a new student and will be your new lab partner. He should be along shortly." I frowned slightly, I hadn't had a lab partner all year and I was sort of liking it. As she finished what she was saying, I heard a knock on the door. Mrs. Jones stomped over to it, the heels of her Mary Jane's clicked on the alabaster colored, tiled floor. She opened the door and the guy I had seen at the office walked in. "Class, this is Will he is new." she said and pointed to the seat beside me, meaning for him to go sit down. Will walked down the hallway and sat down beside me. "Hello again." he said. I looked over at him "hello... um, I'm Karina." He nodded "nice to meet you." "WILL! KARINA! IS THERE SOMETHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE?" Mrs. Jones snapped. "No." I mumbled. "Keep it that way and start paying attention" she growled. The rest of the class went by very slowly and very quietly. I was almost sure that the bell was broken when it rang. "See you!" I called to will. I jumped off the stool and walked out of the class. As I was grabbing my books out of my locker, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I jumped slightly and spun around, seeing Zack standing behind me. Zack was probably the most popular guy at our school that was probably because he was the captain of the football team... Why was he talking to me? I wasn't exactly unpopular, but usually the football team didn't talk to me, especially not the captain. "Hey Karina, sorry for scaring you..." he brushed his dark brown hair out of his face, showing his ocean blue eyes. "But I was wondering if you were going to my party with anyone?" "Depends, are you asking me out?" He nodded "yes." I smiled "well, I am now." Zack laughed, "Awesome, I'll pick you up at seven." I kept smiling "cool, well, see you tonight."


	2. Down the Rabbit Hole, Alice

_Curiouser and curiouser_

The rest of the day went by quite fast. Before I knew it, it was 6:50 and I was getting changed. I put on an orange, strapless, flower print dress that ended just above my knees and my hair was done in loose wavy curls. I heard the doorbell ring and rushed to the door. I opened it up, smiling when I saw Zack.

"Hey!"

Zack smiled, "You look great."

I grinned, "Thanks."

"Ready to go?" he asked.

I nodded and grabbed my purse from the counter.

"Yep!" I replied.

Zack walked back out of the door and I turned around and locked it. My parents were at dinner so the house was empty. I followed him to the car and he opened the door for me

"Thanks," I smiled and got in. He closed the door and went over to his side. He got in and drove back to his house. He lived in a large house. When I say large, I mean giant, and when I say house, I mean mansion. He got out and opened the door for me.

"You are quite the gentlemen," I told him.

Zack laughed, "Why thank you."

The two of us walked inside.

"I'll be right back, I got to go grab the snacks. If anyone knocks, you can let them in."

I nodded and he disappeared into the kitchen. I sat down on the couch; just as I did I heard a knock on the door. I got up and went over to it. I opened up the door and saw some of Zack's friend from the football team.

"Who the hell are you?" the guy in the front who's name I was pretty sure was Josh asked.

"I'm Karina," I mumbled, blushing slightly.

"What are you doing here answering the door?" he demanded sounding slightly irritated.

As I was about to speak up, I heard Zack come back in carrying some bags of chips.

"Are these guys giving you some trouble?" he asked.

"Zack!" Josh yelled and walked past me and inside, being followed by the rest of the group.

"Hey Josh, this is Karina by the way."

He turned towards me, "I'm Josh, you must be Zack's latest girl."

I blushed, "no, not really."

Zack rolled his eyes and shoved Josh lightly. "You're making her un comfortable.

Josh laughed, "That was my goal."

Zack just shook his head. "Well, welcome to the party."

A few more people came to the door and the party really began.

An hour later, I was leaning against the wall sipping some god knows what and looking around at the crowd. Some people were talking, and others were dancing. Standing in the middle of it all, was Will. He was just standing there staring at me. It seemed like nobody even noticed him. When our eyes met he just kept staring at me. I blinked a few times, but he was still there. I turned around and hurried into the next room, it was just as packed. I relaxed against the wall. Then straightened up and blinked as I saw him standing in the middle of the kitchen. How was that possible? He was standing behind me before and I hadn't seen him come in. Once again, he was just staring at me and I was getting VERY freaked out. I ran out the front door and saw him standing right beside me. A scream caught in my throat and I kept running. I sprinted as fast as I could, only glancing back for a second. I saw Liz standing behind me.

"Karina! Where are you going?" she asked.

I gasped for breath and looked around. "It was Will, he was everywhere." I panted.

I felt someone's hand grab me from behind. I tried to struggle and scream, but a cloth was put over my mouth smelling of some toxic fumes. I looked over and saw the same thing happening to Liz... And that was the last thing I saw.

God knows how long later, I woke up lying in a wooden box. I sat up and my head almost hit the roof. I looked behind me and saw Liz sitting against the wall crying. I moved over to her and hugged her.

"Hey, Liz, it'll be okay," I whispered.

"No, Karina! It's not going to be ok. Were in a freaking cart god knows where! We aren't getting out."

I noticed the crack in the wall and looked out seeing we were going along a meadow.

I turned towards Liz.

"Remember that movie we watched this summer where the locked truck flipped and the doors popped open?"

I asked hurriedly and hushed.

Liz nodded and tried to wipe away the tears making her makeup smudge everywhere.

"Were going to flip this cart and the back should pop open." I said and stood up, hunching under the roof. Liz did the same. I grabbed her hand.

"On three we jump to one side, then we jump back to this side. Were going to keep doing that until it flips." I whispered and she nodded again.

"One... Two... Three!" I whispered and lunged at the other side of the cart. I jumped back and pulled her with me. Liz was much like a dead weight, but I kept going. The cart seemed to pause on one wheel for a moment and I threw us harder at it. The cart fell over and just as I had imagined the doors popped open. I didn't stare for a moment; I jumped out and grabbed Liz dragging her behind me. After a moment Liz's feet started moving. The two of us ran towards the forest hearing shouting coming from behind us.

" Liz I know this is hard, but run faster!" I told her as I heard them gaining on us. I could hear their footsteps crashing through the leaves and fallen branches behind us.

"That's king Elliot's land! He'd kill us if we entered!" one of them yelled, it sounded like he had a low voice, probably a boy.

It was a higher, more girlish voice now, "if we let these kids go the leader will kill us!" she growled.

The heavier footsteps stopped, but the lighter ones kept going for a minute until they too stopped.

Liz stopped "were safe now right," she said gasping for breath. "We can stop, right?"

I shook my head, "No, we can't, they might just be moving quieter. We have to keep going." I said and began running again. Liz waited for a moment then followed after me. I pushed branches out of the way as we ran. Suddenly, my feet hit cobblestone and the two of us burst through the last of the bushes. Liz came through and collapsed onto the ground.

"Liz, we can't stop, we need to hide." I said and tried to pull her up, but my own arms were failing me.

"I can't Karina, I'm sorry, I just can't go further."

"Well, you're Going to have to go a bit further, the king wants to see you both," Someone said from behind us. I turned to look at him.

"King?" Liz asked "are we in England?"

"What's this? England?" the boy behind us asked. He had auburn hair that stuck out from under his black top hat, which had a green ribbon around it. He was wearing a log threadbare burgundy coat over a black dress shirt, green tie, and black dress pants. The whole outfit was slightly rumpled but still looked nice.

I figured this place was slightly crazy... So I went along with it.

"Come on Liz, we must go see the king. It's no big deal, we see kings all the time. I am a princess, remember? And you're my maid." I told her and gave her a look telling her to go with it.

Liz nodded and struggled to her feet, "oh yes, let's go your majesty."

Liz limped slightly as we followed the boy to the castle. Liz didn't get very much physical activity. I was slightly out of breath, but tried to stand tall and confident. The boy led us into the castle and to a large room made of marble and gold. On one wall, there was a giant crest with a heart in it. Sitting on a throne was a boy who looked not much older than us. He had tousled blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. He was wearing what you would normally see a teenage boy wearing, dark jeans and a black v-neck t-shirt. On the right shoulder of the shirt was the same crest as on the wall. Resting lightly on his head was a simple gold crown with heart shaped rubies set into it.

"What have you brought me, Simon?" he asked, sounding irritable.

The boy, Simon, bowed and was about to speak when I cut him off.

"I am princess Karina, and this is my maid Liz. We were kidnapped from the kingdom of… York and we're looking for refuge here."

I wasn't sure where that came from... But I was trying to play the part well.

The king raised an eyebrow, "York? I have never heard of it."

I lived in New York, so I just took the New off. I hoped I could fool him. "It's very far off, and very small. I'm not surprised you haven't heard of it."

He nodded slowly, "And why would I house you here? The most I would get would be a few relationships out of it."

I rolled my eyes. "Shouldn't the good deed of helping someone in need be enough?" I asked.

He chuckled in a very obnoxious way. "Good deed? If it is not helping me, or my kingdom. Why should I? New comers are too much of a pain. Leave my sight."

"What if she'll marry you? You did say you wanted to gain relationships." Liz asked, blurting out for the first time.

"Liz!" I yelled! "I will not marry him, he's a massive jerk!"

"Karina, be nice, he's our only shot at getting home."

"I will do it," the king told us.

My eyes widened "you don't even know me! Why would you want to marry a stranger? I don't even know your name!"

"We can get to know each other, and my name is Elliot."

I rolled my eyes again. "I am not marrying you."

"Then you may not stay. I will give you a little while to think about it. If you do not want to be married you must leave. Simon can show you to your rooms."


	3. The Maze of Roses

_Who's been painting my roses red? WHO'S BEEN PAINTING MY ROSES RED? _

_Who dares to taint _

_With vulgar paint _

_The royal flower bed? _

_For painting my roses red _

_Someone will lose his head._

Simon led us down the twisting, shiny maze of hallways until we came to a door of deep brown mahogany and a shined brass handle.

"Liz can stay in this room." He said and opened up the door. Liz hurried in and shut the door. From the glance I had seen of the room, it was painted the col of dusty roses and was carpeted in fine gold. The bed had four towering posts on each corner like guards protecting whoever slept on the bed. Before I could register everything else in the room, Simon was leading me to another door, this one was made of light birch wood with a matching polished brass handle.

"and this will be your room." Simon told me.

I smiled at him "thank you,"

His reply was a simple nod and a small smile. He quickly turned on the heel of his shined boot and left.

I opened the door slowly and looked in. I was stopped, slack jawed, because of how beautiful the room was. The walls were covered with deep brown wooden paneling; except for one was which was covered in wallpaper that looked like a forest. Sitting in front of that wall was an all white, modern looking bed. Beside the bed were two little end tables with lamps on them. The lampshade looks as if they had come from the bark on trees. I walked over to the bed and sat gingerly down on it. It was amazingly soft and comfortable. I laid down on it and suddenly realized how tired I was. I closed my eyes, when I opened them again, sunlight was streaming through the open windows and I was lying under the blankets. Someone must pulled them over me while I slept.

I got out of the bed and went over to the window. I looked out at the courtyard. It had a lot of nice flowers and a little fountain embedded in the cobblestone. Around the fountain base was tiny ruby hearts. Beyond that was a tall rose hedge, behind that, she could see the top of the clock tower.

Today, I would go explore the city.

I quickly made the bed and then left the room. Quietly, I closed the door then hurried down the hallway. I wanted to get out quickly so I wouldn't end up seeing Elliot again. I got through the front doors before the inevitable happened.

As I pushed open the door, it got suddenly lighter. That was because Elliot was pulling it open from the other side. I stopped and my eyes widened.

"Hey," Elliot told me. "I was wondering if-"

I cut him off "-save it. I know you don't care. Leave me alone." I said and pushed past him. I headed towards the break in the bushes. Once I walked in I stopped and realized it was a maze.

"You're going to get lost." He told me.

"I don't care." I replied. I continued walking, just trying to get away from him. Elliot didn't say anything else, but I could hear him following me from behind. I continued walking, setting a brisk pace and taking random turns here and there. Eventually I'd have to get out, right?

This went on for a few hours. Me leading and, much to my displeasure, him following.

"You're never going to get out without my help." Elliot told me.

I kept walking.

"I can do this all day."

I narrowed my eyes and turned my head to look at him as we talked. "just leave me alone, alright?"

I wasn't paying attention as I walked and I ran into a hedge wall. Conveniently for me it was made of rose thorns.

"Are you alright?" Elliot asked and walked over to me.

"I'm fine." I snapped and started picking out the stray thorns that had broken off and gotten stuck in my arms and legs.

I decided to just give up. I got up at turned to him. "Fine, how do you get out?" I asked.

He gave me directions and I memorized them. "…Thanks." I said reluctantly. Maybe he wasn't that bad.

I followed the directions and finally got out of the maze. When I stepped out of the bushes, I was faced with the town. I grinned at it's magnificence.

The streets were paved with beige cobblestone and lined with rows of flowers. Down the streets were squat wooden buildings with signs like "Blacksmith" and "General Store". People milled through the streets doing day to day business, none taking notice of me staring dumbstruck at the town. It the very center of it all was the clock tower I had seen from my room. It was a tall, sturdy, rectangle tat came to a curved point at the top. Facing each direction was the clock face, telling the time. It was beautiful. I had never seen anything like it before. The whole place looked like it had came straight from a storybook.


	4. The Cheshire Cat

_Well, some go this way, and some go that way. But as for me, myself, personally, I prefer the short-cut._

"lost something?" A voice asked.

The sound snapped me out of the trance "no, I've just never seen anything like this before."

I said and looked at him. When I saw him I stepped back with wide eyes, shocked. I must be seeing things because this guy had cat ears… on his head! They twitched slightly and I realized that they were real! How was that possible?

He noticed me staring and smirked.

"Ah, my ears you mean?" he asked.

I nodded "yes those, and this town! Its nothing like mine at home!"

He gave me a curious look. "What do you mean? Wonderland is just like everything."

My eyes widened and I realized I had gotten mixed up with the person I was playing, and the person I really was. I'd have to remember that I was Princess Karina of York… Maybe I should figure out more of this York I had imagined.

"You're right, it does remind me a bit about my kingdom now that I think about it." I told him, hoping I made a good cover up.

"and what kingdom would that be?" he asked

"York," I told him confidently.

"York" he paused, seeming to stare off into space for a moment. "I don't think I've ever heard of it."

"It's really small and far off." I told him, nervously.

"Oh really?" He stared deep into my mind before saying "If this 'York' is real then I haven't heard of it, and I have heard of every kingdom."

"well everyone can't know everything." I told him. How could I find the one person who won't believe me.

"if everyone can't know everything, than nobody must know nothing. And if nobody knows nothing, somebody must know everything." He told me.

I tried to follow that, but couldn't

"uh…. What?" I asked confused.

He smirked "you're lying."

I shook my head wildly "Nuh uh!"

He nodded "I know you are. What are you hiding? Where are you really from?"

"I'm not hiding anything and York is a real place." I told him, desperately clinging onto my lies.

"It's not. Stop lying."

I sighed "Fine. I made up York, I'm really from like this other world. It's modern and there isn't kings and queens. I got kidnapped with my friend and we were brought here."

"Ah, the upperworld. I've heard of that before."

"People here know about that?" I asked amazed.

"Not most people, just some and I happen to be one of them."

I nodded slowly. "will you please not tell Elliot? The people who kidnapped us will find us if we leave the kingdom and if he finds out that I'm not a princess, he'll force us to leave."

He nodded "Your secret's safe with me. So, if your that princess, you must be Karina."

I nodded "yeah, I am, but I don't know who you are."

He smirked "they call me Chesh."

What a peculiar name, I thought.

"well, it's nice to meet you Chesh."

"you as well." He told me.

"so is there anywhere I could get a new outfit." I asked and looked down at my dirty, tattered dress.

Chesh held out his arm and smiled "let me show you."

He led me down the beautiful streets to a short wooden building. A sign above the door claiming it was 'Madame Rose's Robes"

We looked through the store for awhile, Chesh continued to pull me out the ugliest dresses he could find. Right when I was about to give up, I saw a beautiful dress tucked in on a rack. It was strapless and had a sweetheart necklace. It had a belt at the natural waist and three round shiny buttons going up the top. All of it was in a beautiful shade of baby blue. It was beautiful. I grabbed it and went to go try it on. I came out from the curtain a moment later. The dress perfectly hugged my body. "what do you think Chesh?" I asked.

Chesh looked me over slowly before looking up at my face and smiling "it looks perfect on you, Karina."

I grinned "thanks, I think I'll get this one for now then."

I decided I'd just wear this one back to the castle instead of the raggedy dress I had on before.

Chesh and I walked up to the counter and I went to pull out enough coins, but he stopped me and shook his head. "I'll buy it for you." He said and handed the store owner the money. I smiled

"thanks Chesh, you're really nice."

Chesh shrugged "it's no big deal. You should probably get back before king Elliot gets to worried."

I nodded and sighed "yeah, probably."

He frowned as we walked out of the store "whats wrong?"

I shrugged "the thing is, I'm kind of stuck. I don't really like Elliot, but unless I marry him I have nowhere else to go." I told him.

He stopped and looked at me. He had a knowing look on his face, "nothing in life is easy."

That was the only thing he said for the rest of the walk back to the rose maze. As we walked I tried to figure out what he really meant by that. It seemed like he had a hidden meaning behind it.

When we got to the maze, I saw Elliot waiting for me. "well, see you later." I said to Chesh.

"who are you talking to?" Elliot asked me.

I looked over to where Chesh was standing and he was gone… peculiar.

"C'mon, lets go back." Elliot said and led me into the maze.


	5. The Tea Party

_Good advice. If I listened earlier, I wouldn't be here. But that's just the trouble with me. I give myself very good advice, but I very seldom follow it._

I silently followed Elliot through the maze

"Is that a new dress?" He asked me.

"Yes." I told him quietly

"It looks really nice on you" He complimented

"Thanks." I said flatly. Once again with the one word answers. I know he was just trying to be nice, and I wasn't trying to be rude to him, but the truth was I really missed home and I just wanted to get out of this mess. I was always told I wore my heart on my sleeve.

He didn't say anything else to me for the rest of the walk through the maze.

In a way, I found the silence welcoming. It left me to my thoughts, something I definitely needed to sort out.

As I thought, I couldn't help but wonder what my mom was feeling. She was probably really worried about me. I couldn't imagine how it would feel to lose their only child.

And Elliot. I felt horrible about lying to him, even if he was a jerk. It seemed like he was being nice to me now, but that could all be an act. The truth was probably that he was pretending to be nice so I'd marry him. After all, he did say that he'd only marry me for relations.

I felt the worst for what Happened to Liz. It was my entire fault that she was here. I was the one who ran out of the party and go us kidnapped, and I was the one who made up this whole lie and got us either stuck here or lost some place in the forest. Maybe if I had told the truth, they would have showed me how to get home. It was too late now and I only had one option. Marry Elliot.

When we got through the maze, Elliot stopped and looked at me.

"Would it be alright if the two of us had dinner tonight… together?" He asked

I shrugged "fine by me."

He smiled "alright, I'll pick you up in your room at 6. Do you need a and finding your way back?"

I shook my head "No, I'll be alright."

Elliot nodded "see you around, Karina." He waved goodbye over his shoulder as he walked down another hallway. I wasn't quite sure where he was going… maybe to go do some king business. I walked down the hallway I had came from. I could remember where I had to go now.

When I got to my room, I could here talking on the other side of the wall coming from Liz's room. I pressed my ear to the wall, straining to hear.

The first voice I easily recognized as Liz's

"You see it was the worst thing that had ever happened. Karina and I were stuck in this cramped wooden crate. There was barely any room to move!"

She had always been one to exaggerate.

"Go on," the second voice said. I couldn't tell who it was, but it did sound similar.

"Then I had this idea that if we move side to side it'll knock the cart over and the doors would pop open! We tried it and it worked. I was so happy."

"Sure Liz, you can take all the credit," I whispered to myself sarcastically.

"That was really smart of you, Liz"

"Thanks Will," she told him and kept going on with her story. Suddenly it clicked. The voice was Will! My new lab partner from back home. He was the reason I ran out of the party… was he the reason we were here too? It wasn't possible for me to not think he was the one how kidnapped us, but his voice didn't match the ones we heard when we broke out and there was only two sounds of footsteps.

I was finished listening, I was too confused. I closed my eyes for what I swore was just a few seconds to think, but the next thing I knew I heard a knocking on the door. I wondered who it was. It wasn't six yet. I opened the door and saw Elliot.

"What are you doing here?" I asked "you're early."

He shook his head "it's six o'clock, Karina."

"I must have fallen asleep then." I said and shrugged.

Elliot laughed and then pulled out a bouquet of beautiful white roses. "These are for you."

I took them with a smile and smelled them. They were so fresh "Thanks Elliot,"

I laid them on a dresser and a question came to my mind.

"why didn't you get red roses?" I asked "wouldn't they be easy just to take from the maze."

"do you like red roes better? Because I an get you different ones." Elliot told me quickly.

I shook my head, "no, that's not it I like the white ones, I was just curious."

He nodded "well it's just this old family tradition. One time my Great Great Grandfather ordered red roses to give to the woman he loved because they were her favorite. By mistake, the florist gave him white ones so he painted them red. It's a tradition in our family to order white roses and paint them red whenever we give them to a girl. I think it's dumb because it kills the roses so I just left them white."

I laughed "that's kind of a funny tradition but it's sweet what your Great Great Grandfather did for the girl he loved."

Elliot laughed, "You're right, it is a bit silly." He held his arm out for me and smiled "ready to go to dinner?" he asked.

I nodded "yep," I said and deciding to humor him, I hooked my arm with his like he wanted.

He paused and turned to me, "wait, close your eyes."

I nodded and did as he said but while we were walking, I opened one eye slightly to look at him and he was smiling. Then he saw me.

"No peeking!" He said and covered my eye with this hand.

I laughed "sorry, Elliot."

We walked for a few minutes before he said I could open my eyes. When I did what I saw was beautiful.

We were in the middle of the rose maze and it was dark already. To light everything up, he had strung up white twinkling lights on the bushes. In the middle of that there was a little table with a white table cloth and a chair for each of us. On top of the table, there was a few candles, they smelled like vanilla. The candles mixed with the roses smelled amazing.

"This is so amazing," I told Elliot.

He smiled, "thanks, Karina, I was hoping you'd like it. You can look through the menu and decided what you want."

I nodded and looed through the menu, It was wrote in perfect calligraphy, I wondered if Elliot had wrote it himself. As soon as I decided, Simon walked up to us, almost if he could read my mind.

He set down a tea pot, two tea cups, a bowl full of sugar cubes, and a small pitcher with milk in it.

"what can I get for you two?" he asked.

"I'll have the parmasean chicken." Elliot told him

Simon looked at me "and for you, madame?"

"I'll have a chicken ceaser salad, please." I told him

Simon smiled and nodded, "I'll be right back with your food."

When he left Elliot looked at me "So what was York like?"

I shrugged "pretty much just like here." I told him. I couldn't tell him what the real new york looked like and I didn't know what the fake York looked like.

He nodded "do you miss it?"

"so much," I told him truthfully, "my mom must be crazy worried."

"what about your dad?" Elliot asked.

"He wouldn't care even if he knew. He left in the middle of the night when I was little. I've never seen him since." I told him.

He frowned "I'm so sorry that he did that to you."

I shrugged "it's fine. I don't really care." The truth was I really did care. It hurt whenever I thought about it.

Elliot seemed to see through my lie. He reached over and squeezed my hand. "if you ever need anyone to talk to, you can talk to me."

"Thanks Elliot," Maybe this nice side of him was sincere. "what about your parents" I asked.

"They were killed in a war between kingdoms a couple years ago." His voice broke slightly when he said it and I could tell it still hurt him. I squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"I'm so sorry, Elliot, you don't deserve that."

He gave me a small smile "Thank you, Karina, you don't know how much that means to me."

Just then Simon came back and set our food on the table.

"Oh! I forgot to ask before, would you like any tea?" Elliot asked

I smiled and nodded "yes please,"

He poured tea into my teacup and looked at me "do you take any milk or sugar?"

"Just one sugar." I told him.

I took the cup and sipped the tea, it was pretty good, I hadn't had tea for quite awhile.

Elliot and I ate quietly. The silence was not awkward, but full with thought. I thought about how hard it must be for Elliot to run this kingdom on his own.

When we were finished eating, Elliot looked at me, "would you like to go for a walk?"

I nodded "I'd love to." I told him.

I got up and instead of holding out his arm for me, he held out his hand. I took it with a smile. Together, we walked through the rose maze, the hole thing was lit with the same twinkling lights.

"how did you get here?" Elliot asked suddenly.

"Well…" I couldn't exactly tell him how so I just cut out the first part. "Liz and I got kidnapped. We were being taken in some cart and we got it to fall over, making the doors open then we just ran and ran until we got here."

"I'm glad you escaped, there has been lots of princesses kidnapped lately, nobody knows who's doing it though."

I nodded "it's probably the same people." It probably wasn't the same people since I wasn't actually a princess.

The two of us walked around for awhile longer, talking about what we liked and didn't like. We really got to know each other.

Elliot walked me back to my room and smiled "Goodnight Karina."

I smiled back "Goodnight, Elliot."

I went into m room and closed the door, falling asleep in minutes.


	6. A Bottle Marked Poison

_It would be so nice if something would make sense for a change._

The next morning I woke up to a light knocking on the door. I rolled out of bed and pulled the blankets over my head and around my body. I shuffled over to the door and opened it. Simon saw me and blinked, stepping back.

"I seriously don't look that bad."

Simon shook his head "you look kind of scary,"

I rolled my eyes "what are you here for?"

"King Elliot would like to see you." He told me.

I nodded, "lead the way." I said and walked out of the room, still in the blankets.

"Don't you want to change first… or brush your hair?" Simon asked.

I shook my head "I didn't plan on it." I said and closed my door.

Simon simply shrugged and led the way down the hall with me following.

He opened one of the many doors and bowed "here she is, sir. She refused to change."

Elliot looked up from what he was doing at a desk in the center of the room and laughed, "Doesn't bother me,"

Simon nodded and left the room, closing the door behind him.

"I take it you just got up?" Elliot asked

I nodded and curled up in a sofa chair in the room.

"If I would have know, I wouldn't have waited but I thought you would be awake."

I shrugged "it's fine, I needed to get up anyways. So what did you need me for?"

"Well, seeing as you only have two dresses right now, I was wondering if you wanted to go shopping to get more clothes and stuff."

I shrugged "sounds good to me." I used the elastic band around my wrist to put my hair up into a ponytail and smoothed out my dress. It was all I had to wear.

"Ready to go?" Elliot asked

I nodded and got up, leaving the blanket there "yep." I said and walked over to him.

He wrapped his arm around me and led me out the door and to the maze.

"So how's your day been so far?" I asked him.

"Pretty dry, actually." He told me.

"So what do you do as the king?"

"Well, mostly I just make sure nobody attacks us and keep track of who enters and lives here and leaves. There's not much to it." Elliot admitted

I nodded "it always seems so difficult."

"Wouldn't you know since you're a princess and all?"

I quickly tried to cover up the lie. "Oh uh… yeah, I never really paid attention though."

Elliot gave me a weird look before nodding "I see."

Together, we walked into Madame Rose's Robes and it seemed that the sales person remembered me

"Back again?" She asked with a real looking smile.

I laughed, "What can I say? I love to shop."

"Where's the other boy that was with you yesterday?" she asked.

Elliot looked at me with a frown "another guy?"

"I met him yesterday, his name's Chesh, he showed me around."

Elliot frowned "who's Chesh, I keep track of everyone who enters and leaves and I don't know him."

"Maybe you just forgot his name," I guessed.

He paused before nodding "that's probably right."

"Can I help you find anything today?" she asked and walked over. When she walked out from behind the counter she was about my height with long red hair. She had a sweet smile and reminded me of my own mother.

"Well Rose, I would like to find a beautiful dress for this beautiful lady." Elliot said with a smile.

So this must be the Rose from the sign.

Rose laughed "I remember when boys would call me beautiful."

Elliot rolled her eyes "your still beautiful Rose"

"Thanks for the flattery, Elliot, but you're a bit young for me. Now, let's get a dress for your lady."

She walked over to a rack of yellow dresses and pulled out one with orange flowers down the side. She held it up to me and shook her head "no… this color doesn't suit you" she walked over to the red dresses and picked one out from those, it had a sweetheart neckline and halter neck straps. She held this one up to me and shook her head "no, it's not the right cut."

She went across the room picking out dresses and deciding against them. She took out two dresses side-by-side and smiled "perfect."

The first was light blue jean that went to the knees and buttoned up, it was like a button up shirt that was too long, hugged the body, and didn't have sleeves. Around the neck, the collar was rounded and white. With it was a simple white tie to go around the waist that knotted in bow. The second dress was a loose, white chiffon dress that had a baby blue silk tie going around the middle to give it shape. I tried the first dress on; somehow rose had managed to get the perfect size and fit. I walked out of the changing room and Elliot's jaw dropped. It seemed he couldn't take his eyes off me.

"That looks amazing on you, Karina"

I blushed, "thanks."

Rose clapped "oh it's perfect! Try on the other one!"

I tried on the next dress and got the same reaction from them. We shopped for a while longer and found a couple more dresses. When we paid, Rose tried to give Elliot half off all of it, but he refused. In the end, he just gave her a big enough tip that would cover the rest of the bill anyways.

We walked back together hand in hand, Elliot insisted on carrying the bags (regardless of my arguments). We got back to my room and he smiled

"Well, see you tomorrow, Karina."

"Goodbye Elliot." I said and waved goodbye.

I went into my room and set the bags down and then went through the door that joined Liz's rooms and mine. She wasn't there so I lay back on the bed and waited.

After a few hours she finally walked in. She carried a bottle that was swishing with alcohol.

Liz giggled "Hey Karina-poo whatcha doing?" she asked and fell back on the bed with me, accidentally spilling a bit of what I could now smell was whisky.

"Liz, are you drunk?" I asked,

Liz shook her head crazy "Nooooooo!"

I smiled and shook my head "Liz can I talk to you?"

"Sure bestie! Whaddya need?" She asked.

"Can I have some advice… about boys?" I asked.

"Oooh! You and the king!" Liz grinned and giggled.

I rolled my eyes "be sober for a sec Liz. I think I'm starting to like him."

Liz stopped and shook her head "no Karina, he's a meanie."

I sighed, "Liz he's actually really nice."

"It's a lie! ALL A LIE!"

I sighed "Liz… what do I do?"

"Drink it away sista!" she said and gave me the bottle.

I grabbed it and chugged a bit before smiling a bit "how does this help?"

"You'll see, keep drinking."

I finished off that bottle and was a bit tipsy, but we decided to go find more alcohol.

We somehow made it too the kitchen and grabbed some cups. We started doing shots and cheering while venting about how we don't need boys. After a few hours of that Liz decided she wanted to go skinny dipping and I set off to find Elliot.

I stumbled down the hallways calling out his name.

"Elliot baby! Where are you?" I screamed and then giggled. "Come find me!"

I kept going down the hallway until I eventually found him in one of the rooms doing paperwork.

"What are you doing here?" Elliot asked and rubbed his eyes. He was clearly tired but I didn't notice while I was drunk.

"I came to see you baby" I slurred and gave him a wink.

Elliot sighed and got up "Karina you're drunk, you should go to bed."

I pouted "don't you want me baby?"

"you're drunk Karina," Elliot said again, hoping I'd give up.

I wrapped my arms around him and tried to kiss him "I love you baby"

Elliot held his face away "Karina no. Not right now. You're drunk and you need to go to bed."

I tried to kiss him again and winked "I'll go to bed if you go there with me" I said with a giggle.

"Fine" Elliot agreed. "Just go wait over there for a minute I need to finish this."

I grinned and stumbled over to the chair "I knew you loved me too baby."

Elliot sighed and went back to his paper work.

"You know, I thought you were a meanie when we met. I thought you were selfish and absolutely horrible and mean. You were the worst person ever! I didn't want to marry you at all! You were a jerk and on a scale of one to ten you were a big fat zero!" As I spoke my voice got louder until I was yelling. When I was done I started giggling like crazy.

Elliot took a deep breath and didn't say anything.

I dug deep in my pockets and found some shot bottles of different alcohols. I didn't know how they got there, but I popped the caps and drank each one. Suddenly I felt really dizzy and every thing was starting to get blurry. I decided I needed to lie down on the floor. I stretched out on the floor and the next thing I knew I had passed out.

The next morning I had a pounding headache and felt like I wanted to die. The last thing I could remember from last night was taking shots with Liz in the kitchen. I tried to remember more, but I just couldn't. I figured I must of stumbled back to bed somehow.

I pulled my hair up into a high bun and then put on a random dress from my closet. I shuffled to the kitchen, still half asleep, to get some coffee and see if there were any painkillers here.

I put a pot of coffee on in the kitchen and sat at the table. I rested my head on my arms as I waited for the pot to brew. I heard someone come in and I looked up seeing Elliot standing there staring at me. All of a sudden the rest of the night hit me like a bus. My jaw dropped when I realized what I had done.

"Oh my god, Elliot, I was so drunk last night… I am so sorry, I was being such a freak and being all over you, I'm so sorry. And what I said about you being mean, I am so sorry! It's not true… actually that was what I thought when I first met you and I'm sorry because I know now that's not how you are. I'm so sorry about everything last night." I was starting to ramble on. I did that when I was sorry for something.

Elliot sighed and got some cereal and sat across from me at the table.

"It's fine, I knew you were drunk. I'm not mad."

I smiled "That's a relief, I feel so bad about what I said."

The coffee was done and I went to go pour myself a cup.

"Did you really think that I was as awful as you made me sound last night?" Elliot asked quietly.

I stopped for a moment with my back to him before nodding, "Yes, but I was wrong about you. You aren't actually like that. You're nice, and kind, and caring, and a good king." I told him.

All he said was "oh."

I sat back down at the table quietly and sipped the coffee. After a bit, I got a toast with peanut butter and jam.

"Are you going to town today?" Elliot asked finally.

I nodded, "Probably, are you?"

He shook his head, "No, not today. I have work to do. I've been slacking off a bit lately."

"Well it's probably best if you keep the kingdom," I smiled, "That's the most important thing."

Elliot shrugged, "I guess." He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to me. "Here, you can use this to find your way in and out of the maze. The way is marked in red."

I grinned, "Thanks Elliot."

"You're welcome, Karina, don't get into too much trouble," he teased with a cheeky grin on his face.

I rolled my eyes and laughed, "You know that's impossible with me." I joked.

I got up "Well see you when I get back," I said and left.


	7. Off With Her Head

_I warn you dear child, if I lose my temper, you lose your head. Understand?_

I followed the map closely and made my way out of the Maze. I grinned proudly as the sun shone warm upon my face. I walked down to the bakery I had seen last time I was here. I walked into the bakery a few people stared and I could hear the hushed whispers of people talking about me. It seemed word had gotten out about how I was the kings fiancée. Even though I had been pretty popular back home, I was also quite shy.

I quietly ordered a piece of delicious looking apple pie and sat down at a table by myself. I took a bite, it would absolutely delicious, it tasted just like my grandma's.

I heard the screech of a chair being pulled back and I looked up. I saw Chesh. His dark hair was tousled, but he still looked nice.

I smiled, "Hey, Chesh."

Chesh smiled back, "Morning Karina. How's the pie?"

"Delicious! I have to come here more often," I said with a grin.

Chesh laughed, "Tweedle's is the best bakery around… It's also the only bakery around, but it's still good."

"It must be the best one throughout the whole universe" I smiled.

"You're probably right" Chesh said and laughed.

I finished off the piece off pie and smiled "that was the best thing I've eaten in a long time."

Chesh laughed, "so would you like to go for a walk? I can show you around the rest of town."

I nodded "that sounds great!" I said and got up. I pushed my chair in and threw out the paper plate. I started to wipe of the table with my napkin.

"You don't have to do that." Chesh told me.

I shrugged "I don't mind." I told him and finished what I was doing. I threw out the napkin and smiled "ready to go?" I asked.

Chesh nodded "yep."

The man behind the counter smiled at me as thanks for cleaning the table and I smiled back

"The pie was delicious." I told him

He smiled even wider "Thank-you."

I walked outside with Chesh "So what do people do here?"

Chesh smirked "just look and you'll see."

I started paying attention to what was happening around us. The little boys were running around and playing catch on the streets holding onto their newsboy caps so they wouldn't fall off. The little girls played with dolls in doorways and on the stairs wearing cute little dresses that matched their dolls. I smiled and as we walked I saw the kids getting older, the boys still played catch and played other sports while the girls giggled in little groups. Every once and a while one of the girls would go and talk to the boys while the other girls watched; probably on a dare.

I smiled, "it's just like when I was little."

Chesh laughed "it never changes."

I continued to watch, as I saw people closer to my age walking together, girls and boys. It reminded me of what you would see at school or the mall. I sighed. It reminded me too much of home and I really missed it.

"Chesh, you're a smart guy, right?" I asked.

"What kind of question is that?" Chesh asked, "of course I'm a smart guy."

"Then can I ask you a question?"

Chesh nodded, "go ahead."

I sighed and was silent for a moment, "I'm really starting to like Elliot, but I'm worried that he'll hate me if I tell him the truth and kick Liz and I out. We have nowhere else to go and can't get back. We'll get kidnapped again. I also want to tell him thought because I really like him and feel bad lying."

Chesh paused and thought for a moment, "Go with your gut. There's going to be pros and cons to each thing you just have to decide what is worth losing."

"I hoped our advice would be a bit more straight forward," I sighed.

Chesh laughed, "I can't tell you what to do. Only you can."

I groaned, "why can't you give me normal advice!" I sighed, "thanks anyways, I think it helps."

Chesh smiled at me, "good luck."

We walked around for awhile longer, talking about Upper World and Wonderland. He walked me back to the entrance of the Rose Maze.

"Well, I hope everything works out for you whatever you choose," Chesh told me.

I smiled, "Thanks Chesh, you've been a really good friend."

Chesh laughed, "Thanks Karina, I've been doing the best I can."

"I'll see you soon then," I told him with a smile.

"Bye," He said and left. Both of us went our separate ways. By the time I got out of the maze, it was starting to get dark. The sun had almost set. The sky was streaked with mysterious blue and purples and painted with swirling oranges and yellows. I stopped and stared for a moment as the sun went further under the horizon. When it was gone I sighed and went inside the castle and walked to my room. I yawned and soon fell asleep after I laid down.

I ran out of the kingdom being chased by the guards. I knew I shouldn't have told Elliot the truth, now he wants to kill me. I had no idea where Liz was, I think they got her a long time back. I wanted to go and save her, but that way neither of us would survive. I made it through the trees and suddenly they stopped chasing me. Everything was eerie silent. I crept through the trees trying to be as quiet as possible.

Loud, thumping, footsteps crashed through the trees. I started running again, trying to get away from them. I was tackled to the ground in a few moments.

I screamed, "get off me!"

My attacker held a knife to my throat, "This is what you get for running away the first time."

The guy attacking me shoved the knife into my throat.

I woke up with a scream but quickly muffled it. I felt sweaty, but I was cold. Hot tears dripped down my face, I ran a hand through my hair and took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. I got out of bed and wrapped a sweater I had gotten from Elliot around myself. I walked silently down the hall and wiped my eyes, I couldn't believe I was actually doing this. The only thing was I just hoped Elliot wouldn't react the way he had in my dream.

I stopped outside and closed my eyes. I pressed my hands to the doors but didn't open them. I felt the cool wood under my fingertips and tried to keep myself from tearing up again. Of course that wasn't possible. I wanted to wait till I could control myself but that was just another stalling technique. I pushed the door slowly open; Elliot was still asleep.

I walked over to where Elliot was sleeping on the massive bed. He looked so peaceful. I could barely bring myself to wake him, but if I didn't do it now, I never would.

"Elliot?" I whispered. He stirred slightly. "Elliot?" I asked again but louder this time. This time Elliot woke up.

"What are you doing here, Karina? It's late." He asked groggy and confused.

"I need to tell you something important," I told him.

"Can it wait till morning?" He asked, clearly tired.

I was about to say no, but I shook my head. "No, I have to tell you now or I never will."

Elliot sat up and frowned "What is it?"

"Well… I lied to you." I said quietly. "I'm not actually a princes… or from York. York actually is not even real. I made it up. Liz and I got kidnapped from a place I think people call Upperworld. We had no idea where we were or how we could get home so we made stuff up hoping you'd let us stay here."

Elliot was silent. He stared straight forward, thinking.

I sighed. "Liz and I will be gone before morning." I turned away so he wouldn't see the tears streaming down my face and I left. Before I got out the door I felt to strong, warm arms wrap around my waist and pull me close to him.

"I don't want you to leave," Elliot told me. "But I suppose I can't force you to stay."

I frowned, confused, "Aren't you mad that I lied to you…?"

"Oddly enough, no. I love you, Karina. I don't want you to leave."

I turned towards him and smiled "really?"

Elliot nodded "Yes."

I smiled and hugged him "You really don't know how happy that makes me."

"What brought this on?" Elliot asked.

"I had a dream that I told you and you got mad so Liz and I left but when I got out of the kingdom I was found by the people that had kidnapped us in the first place and he… he killed me."

Elliot held me close. "I would never, ever, let that happen."

I smiled, "Thankyou, Elliot."

"Well, why don't I walk you back to your room?" Elliot suggested.

"Actually… I was hoping you'd let me sleep here…? You don't have to though."

Elliot laughed "sure"

He led me over to the bed and the two of us laid down together. After only a few moments we were both asleep.


	8. The End

It had been three months since I had first met Elliot and as I looked at myself I couldn't believe that I was going to marry him in a few minutes. My wedding dress was long, white chiffon. It was strapless and floor length. Around my waist was a ruched silk band to give the dress shape. The dress was of course made by Rose. My hair was brushed over to the side and was into soft curls. I had barely any makeup on, just a bit of natural eye make-up and a light brush of lipstick that was only a shade or two darker than my lips.

I peeked out the door and saw Liz talking with Will as she got dressed. They had gotten together during the last month. I sat down and rested my head on my hands. I couldn't believe that I was getting married without my parents here. I really loved Elliot thought, so I was ok with it. I wish I could go home with him, but he has to stay here and run his kingdom so we couldn't… the crazy things people do for love.

"You ok?" A voice asked.

I looked up and saw Chesh. His dark hair was tousled and crazy as always but instead of his usual purple striped shirt, he had on a white button up shirt and vest with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Around his neck was a bowtie in his signature purple.

I nodded "yeah, just a bit nervous." I said truthfully.

Chesh sat down and put his arm around my shoulders "It's going to work out for the best in the end because you two love each other, right?"

I smiled "Of course." Loving Elliot was the only thing I was really sure of.

"Alright, then we have a wedding to make happen." Chesh grinned

I laughed "you're right, lets go."

Everyone went to where they were supposed to go. I waited as Liz walked down the aisle with Elliot's best man, Simon. Elliot held his arm out for me with a smile.

"Ready?"

I nodded with a smile, "Yes"

The doors opened and I saw everything. There was multiple white satin covered chairs lined up on equal rows on either side of the walkway that was scattered with rose petals on the grass. Each and every chair was filled with people I had met over the last few months and Elliot's friends.

I finally looked up at Elliot; he was standing in front of the rose garden with the pastor from the church. He looked amazing. He was wearing a white button up shirt with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows as well. Instead of a white vest, he had a black one with a turquoise blue tie tucked into the vest. I couldn't help but smile happily and neither could he.

I felt the urge to run up to him, but Chesh's arm held me back. I had to be content with a slow walk. Chesh led me up to the front and winked. I grinned at Chesh then turned to Elliot. Elliot took my hand and gave it a slight squeeze.

"You look beautiful," He whispered as the Pastor started the beginning of the wedding.

I grinned back "You look pretty nice too," I said just as quietly as him.

I got lost in his eyes for majority of the wedding, only vaguely paying attention to the pastor.

"Karina, do you take Elliot to be your husband?" The pastor asked.

I grinned "I do"

He turned to Elliot "Elliot, do you take Karina to be your wife?"

He nodded "I do."

"By the power vested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife." The pastor smiled "Then you may kiss the bride."

Elliot cupped my cheeks with his hands "I love you," he whispered then kissed me softly.

I couldn't help but smile as we kissed. Elliot pulled back with a grin. "I have the most beautiful wife!"

I laughed "and I have the most amazing husband,"

"Let's have a party!" Liz cheered and got the DJ to start blasting some music. She had her Ipod with her so they played everything she had. They played a slow song and Elliot came up to me, "may I have this dance?"

I smiled happily "sure," I said and put my arms on his shoulders. Elliot put his arms around my waist and pulled me close as we started danced.

"I love you," Elliot whispered.

"I love you too," I whispered back.

_Three years later_

"Mommy!" Alex yelled from inside the maze. "I'm lost!"

I sighed and put Lilly and the book I was reading down "I'm coming sweetheart, just wait where you are."

Elliot walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Is he lost again?"

I laughed and nodded, "Uh huh."

Elliot smiled and shook his head. "Well, let's go find him."

Before I could take another step Lilly ran up behind me and grabbed my leg. She looked up at me with her wide green eyes.

"Don't leave me, Mommy."

Elliot picked her up and rested her on his hip while he held onto my hand with his free one.

"What about me?" Elliot asked.

Lilly giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Together, as a family, we walked into the maze just as we always did.


End file.
